The term “organic feed materials” includes biomass, peat, coal, oil shales/sands, plastic waste materials, and also includes blends of these feed materials.
The term “biomass” is understood herein to mean living or recently living organic matter.
Specific biomass products Include, way of example, forestry products (including mill residues such as wood shavings), agricultural products, biomass produced in aquatic environments such as algae, agricultural residues such as straw, olive pits and nut shells, animal wastes, municipal and industrial residues.
The term “coal” is understood herein to include, by way of example peat, brown coal, black coal, and a range of products referred to as “coal wastes”.
The term “oil shales” is understood herein to include by way of example any geological sedimentary materials containing a usable proportion of organic molecules.
The following description focuses on converting organic feed materials in the form of biomass and coal via pyrolysis. However, it is understood that the present invention is not confined to the reaction mechanism described as “pyrolysis” and extends to other reaction mechanisms for converting solid organic feed materials into any one or more of a liquid water product, a liquid oil product, a gas product, and a solid carbon-containing product such as a char product. By way of example, the present invention extends to converting solid organic feed materials via drying materials and has important applications in drying materials such as brown coal, with minimal if any pyrolysis, that have significant amounts of retained or bound water. It also extends to a degree of gasification taking place within the reaction chamber.
International application PCT/AU2009/000455 in the name of the applicant discloses a method for pyrolysing a solid organic feed material, such as biomass and coal and blends of biomass and coal, which includes the steps of:                (a) supplying the solid organic feed material to an inlet of a pyrolysis reaction chamber;        (b) moving the solid organic material through the reaction chamber from the inlet to a downstream end of the chamber and exposing the organic material to a temperature profile within the chamber that dries and pyrolyses the organic material and releases water vapour and a volatile products gas phase from the organic material as the organic material moves through the chamber;        (c) moving the water vapour phase and the volatile products gas phase produced by heating the solid organic material in step (b) through the reaction chamber in a direction counter to that of the solid organic material so that the water vapour phase and condensable components of the volatile products gas phase condense in cooler upstream sections of the chamber and form a liquid water product (water recovered from a pyrolysis process is typically somewhat acidic and contains dilute smoke chemicals and other organics; it is often referred to as pyroligneous acid or “wood vinegar” and has beneficial applications in horticulture) and a separate liquid oil product; and        (d) discharging the liquid water product and the liquid oil product via separate upstream outlets of the chamber and a dried and pyrolysed solid product from a downstream outlet in the chamber.        
International application PCT/AU2009/000455 also discloses discharging a non-condensable gas product via a separate outlet of the chamber to the above-described outlet.
The term “pyrolysis” is understood in the International application and herein to mean thermal decomposition of organic material in the absence of or with limited supply of an oxidising agent such that only partial gasification is possible. This could range from “mild pyrolysis” leading to drying and partial thermal decomposition, to “full pyrolysis” resulting in oil, gas and char products. The main products of pyrolysis are gases, liquids, and char. Typically, the gases include carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and hydrocarbons. Typically, the liquids include water, tars, and oils.
The method may include generating the temperature profile in the reaction chamber by supplying an oxygen-containing gas to the reaction chamber and at least partially combusting combustible gases in the chamber.
The method may include supplying water into the downstream end of the chamber and evaporating the water and thereby recuperating heat energy in the dried and pyrolysed product and forming water vapour.
The International application also discloses an apparatus for pyrolysing an organic feed material, including biomass and coal, including blends of biomass and coal, which includes:                (a) a pyrolysis reaction chamber having an upstream end, a downstream end, an inlet for organic feed material, an outlet for gas produced in the chamber, and separate outlets for (i) a liquid oil product, (ii) a liquid water product and (iii) a dried and pyrolysed product;        (b) an assembly for moving organic material through the reaction chamber from the upstream end towards the downstream end of the chamber counter-current to the flow of gas generated in the chamber;        (c) an assembly for establishing a temperature profile in the reaction chamber that includes the following temperature zones extending successively along the length of the reaction chamber from the upstream end of the chamber: a first temperature zone for water condensation (Zone 1), a second temperature zone for water vaporisation (Zone 2), a third temperature zone for oil and tar condensation (Zone 3), and a fourth temperature zone for oil and tar vaporisation and forming the dried and pyrolysed product (Zone 4).        
The disclosure in the International application is incorporated herein by cross-reference.
The above description is not to be taken as an admission of the common general knowledge in Australia and elsewhere.